Beijing part 2

I’m Home! Sitting in the common room at The Red Lantern House No 3 – have just had a bowl of amazing dumplings with spring onions and herbs – offered me by the family who runs the hotel. Around a big table a group of seven men and one woman smoke, talk and feed etch other. Among them is also William, my host, the musician. I’m home. After two days I actually look foreward to getting back to the hotel. Not to take a hot shower (the bathroom is icecold), not to linger on my bed (the room is good, but also cold, and I have begun to speek to myself when I’m alone already). I’m exited to get into the warm atmosphere of the Li-family. Scott (the teen) is half sleeping on the sofa next to me, and William’s wife picks her teeth with a toothstick.

Finally I’m getting defrosted. Wearing my new woollen trousers, sold me by Beijings two smartest sellers. I went into this old fashion womans clotes store to see if I could get hold of a woollen cardigan. The store was packed with pink dressed women and just a few customers. Naturally my wallet was up for trouble. First I sort of had to buy a cardigan. Fair enough, I was asking for one. But after successfully communicating that I was freezing (by the not so smart looking language of body) they wanted to sell me these woollen trousers. They actually looked kind of smart, but they were on the prizy side. I asked if I could try them on, since one size did not look like my size, but aperantly the store had no fittingroom. When one of the dames was about to write the check, I told them I had to think about it. But suddenly there was an opportunity for me to try them on anyway. I was guided into a door hidden in the wall and helped out of my jeans and into the wool. They did fit, but as I tried to take them off, I was told to take my jeans on top of them. No protest accepted. After that the pink, smiling lady escorted me – and my now two bills – to the counter. After all I am warm now. and the whole business was worth every penny in a good laughter. To be so effectively fooled is just splendid. At least when I’m sort of happy with the result!

Now the party are getting into a mighty good mood over here. I better order a pot of thé, or maybe a glass of what they are drinking... And here is what happenes when you shoot Chinese tourists in the Tiananmen Square – they “give you your picture” too.